180 Gulf residents named in bogus degree scam
More than 180 people from across the Gulf have been blacklisted for holding fake US academic certificates allegedly bought from non-accredited institutions, including 69 from Saudi Arabia and 68 from the UAE.
Almost 10,000 people in total have been blacklisted by the US Department of Justice for purchasing fake high school and college degrees from a “degree mill” based in Washington.
According to reports, those named include hundreds of people with links to the US military, educational institutions, government and security agencies such as the CIA.
The fraud came to light following the indictment and conviction of eight people involved in running the scam after being apprehended by the US Attorney's Office in "Operation Gold Seal".
The ringleader of the scam, a 58-year-old high school dropout, has been jailed for three years.
The Department of Justice had refused to make the list public, but US newspaper The Spokesman-Review published the full list of names, where they come from, type of degree and institution on its website.
Buyers from Saudi Arabia and the UAE were the top purchasers of the certificates within the Gulf, with 13 Omani buyers, 12 Bahrainis and four Qataris also named.
According to media reports the buyers paid between a few hundred dollars for a bachelor’s degree up as much as $8,000 for a PhD.
According to The Spokesman-Review, the Department of Justice is considering prosecuting some of the buyers - an estimated 300 employees in the US federal government are named on the list.
Here are the links:
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/527904-180-gulf-arabs-named-in-bogus-degr...
lol everyone does it it seems. When I was in uni, at least 50% of the Chinese guys at uni bought their degrees.
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Mr. Q's Blog - A Qatari's view on Qatar.
No secret can be hidden forever!
Shame on these people. Imagine having a medical treatment from a BOGUS practitioner??? mercy for the patient! tsk..tsk..
never give up...
This has been going on for years especially in the teaching branch - many teachers make their teaching degrees online or at least register and can then get a certificate for money. This information I received when I applied for a job in an institute and they asked me if I can teach English - I was told I can get a certificate online for a pinch of salt.
A few years ago on they discovered a doctor who had been a highly paid specialist (can't remember if this was in Germany) was a complete fake and he had been a head surgeon only after serveral complaints did they find out.
mmmmm, lets hope that the nurses they work with blow the whistle on them! Theres been a few bogus doctors in the UK (mainly from India it has to be said!)....
Here in Qatar there was a big story of an Indian Doctor at Hamad Hospital who was kicked out as he did the same. Bought his degree from his own country and was pratcing here for 3 years. He was jailed and fined all the back payments that he received from Hamad Hospital and also the housing allowance including his wife's allowances.
Never say Never for fear of Forever!!
that would help me have my internship at Rue Saint Denis to inspect the available resources there :D
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Which instituition was this
It is worrying.. Last year, Saudi Arabia kicked out a lot of Doctors who had bogus qualifications..
Problem is that private clinics and hospitals may turn to these types in order to save costs..
it's not just the fact they are cheating it's more because, one day, they could be practising as a doctor somewhere!
Mind you, I suppose that's unlikely because they'd have to actually PASS exams to get that far, but even so .... stranger things have happened and perhaps they can buy their Medical Degrees just as easily, having maybe completed the course and failed but with enough knowledge to fool some hospital authorities.
Scary!
A degree from Berkeley.. and he just bought it!! Pfff
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╬ Jai Guru Deva ╬
you can't cheat always...
you can easily buy these kind of documents, really unfair for those who went blood and sweat to finish their bachelor's degree.
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"